Are The Weeds Stopping You From Fishing?

[bigbill]

In my first year of being heavy into bass fishing around the time this forum started up. I was catching bass on live bait. I was spending up to $50 and more taking the kids fishing too.

Then one night while reeling in a night crawler I had a strike. I thought to myself the bass wanted something moving. A weather front was approaching in two hours rain was due. I had a set of those mepps #3 inline spinners. I put on a silver blade with a gray tail. I started catching bass after bass. I tossed the red/white one with the brown tail and we caught doubles for like 45 minutes to an hour till it got dark. I started using two rod setups one with live bait and one with lures. As I learned the presentations the lure setup i stayed fishing with live bait. Learning and trying all the different p presentations is the key to success. Now as the spring became summer here comes that nasty green stuff. It stopped my fishing dead. I learned very quickly about surface weeds, submerged weeds. Now my baits changed direction I searched about fishing in the weeds. I found out there are plenty of weedless baits. One of my buddies swears by live minnows. I took out a mepps timber doidle "0" silver blade with the 4" white split double tail tralier(grub). We started fishing off a man-made dam/road. I was 2' feet above the water. I could see the open weed pockets. I casted it out and let it drop in the open pockets. I out fished his live minnows. My next successful bait is the mister twister top prop. Using my favorite 1, 2, 3, short rip then pause presentation turned out to be successful too. Even with the trailer and trailer hook it's weedless. There's also jigs too. Heavy weighted c rigs.

My point is don't let the weeds stop you from fishing

I don't use any live bait since then.

I'm sorry if I'm boring but I like to see everyone improve and catch bass. Mainly the youngsters that's my goal. I stop fishing many times to help the kids.

[SirSnookalot]

From bass fishing any way.  Pictured below is what I face around here nearly every day this time or year.  If I don't have this sea lettuce I have muck, high weeds, and  floating grass.  Now with days at 90 degrees most of the time the bass have become lethargic and me too.  As the saying goes in Florida, when the bass turn off the snook turn on, believe me it's true.

[deep]

Nope, them weeds don't stop me from fishing. They do stop me from fishing certain lures; but that's fine. Techniques matter more than the particular lure being used, and there are always workarounds.

[the reel ess]

I was always a T-rig and C-rig and crankbait guy when I was fishing barren lakes. Occasionally, I'd use a topwater or spinnerbait. I started fishing a weedy, mossy reservoir and I had to go to weightless stuff. Trick worm, fluke, spinnerbaits, wacky rig, floating minnow, topwaters, etc. It's a lot different, but still fun.

[Jaderose]

Nope, them weeds don't stop me from fishing. They do stop me from fishing certain lures; but that's fine. Techniques matter more than the particular lure being used, and there are always workarounds.

 

 

This

[MIbassin]

Algae, yes. Weeds, no.

[Penguino]

Lol the weeds you are talking about aren't the type of weeds I am talking about.

 

There is no way to effectively fish this gunk. I have tried everything and nothing works. I believe the excessive algae grows because of the runoff fertilizer and pesticide mos people use.

[the reel ess]

 

Lol the weeds you are talking about aren't the type of weeds I am talking about.

 

There is no way to effectively fish this gunk. I have tried everything and nothing works. I believe the excessive algae grows because of the runoff fertilizer and pesticide mos people use.

 

I' still throw a frog on this slop.

[Penguino]

I' still throw a frog on this slop.

Frogs are the only lures you can use. Even then, they don't work too well, as after you set the hook on the fish, you end up draggin another pound of weeds behind the fish.

[fish devil]

Slop= Jig.  That simple.  With stout equipment you can pull fish from anywhere............

 

There is a 1oz. jig in there somewhere.....

 

[fish devil]

90+ degree day. Bass in thick weeds. Probably 6" of water.   Jig does the job......

 

[fish devil]

Another bass in super heavy cover pulled out with a jig.....

 

[Penguino]

Honestly, Its not worth it fishing jigs or any subsurface bait in HEAVY algae. I guarantee you, the eye of the hook will be smothered in weeds no matter how "weedless" the lure claims to be. For lighter weeds, I agree, t rigs and topwaters are probably the way to go.

[papajoe222]

That 'snot moss' is the worst, especially when it get so thick on the surface that my Lab can walk across it.  Just kidding (I don't have a dog), but you know when it gets three inches thick on top you'd swear one could. I'll throw a frog on top and work it to the edge. The bass can't even bust through it, but they'll follow it out to the edge and explode on it first chance they get.

[scaleface]

 

Lol the weeds you are talking about aren't the type of weeds I am talking about.

 

There is no way to effectively fish this gunk. I have tried everything and nothing works. I believe the excessive algae grows because of the runoff fertilizer and pesticide mos people use.

 

I pulled a lot of big fish out of that stuff using  a weightless Riverside Top Gun and a heavy flippng hook .

[Thornback]

I like the lettuce -- I can run live shiners under it and pull out some nice bass.

[Bankbeater]

The only problem I have fishing in weeds is keeping them off of the prop.  I started keeping a paddle on board for when the weeds got too thick for the motor to go through.

[primetime]

My Favorite places to fish are called "Swamps" and Backwater flooded fields and most people avoid all the "choked out area's" and everyone fishes the same open water, but trust me, if you can get your bait under those weeds, the bigger fish will find your bait, just make sure you are prepared for this kind of fishing as I was not when I moved from NY to Florida...I alway's thought 20lb Mono was plenty, but now I use the heaviest braid I can, and if I use mono, I use copoly and go Hybrid #20 which is #31 pound test and I only use that if Gar or Mudfish are cutting through my braid or if the braid is too loud and spooking fish if fishing in stalks since braid rubs and no doubt causes fish to spook. I met a guide the other day at a boat Ramp who had all of his rods rigged up with 100lb braid, and for his shiner clients he does not let them on the boat without a minimum of 30lb test mono....and xtra heavy rods...It was like he was deep sea fishing for grouper, but then again, in Florida a 15lb bass is not a crazy thought.